Madison's Moments
by jackwabbit
Summary: SPOILERS FOR MCKAY AND MRS MILLER, SUNDAY! Madison Miller is very attached to a certain Scottish physician. Ch 1 is 2 yrs post season 3. Ch 2 is 20 yrs post season 3. Ch 3 is 24 yrs post season 3. Ch 4 is 30 yrs post season 3. Gen, FutureFic. COMPLETE
1. A Favorite Uncle

**Madison's Moments  
**

_Moment One-A Favorite Uncle_

Rated: G.

Category: Gen, Carson/Rodney/Madison Miller Friendship.

Season: Future Season (two years post season three).

Spoilers: Sunday, McKay and Mrs. Miller.

Summary: Carson Lives On.

Note: Rendered Somewhat AU by Kindred.

---

The little girl snuggled contentedly into her covers. She was sleepy after a long day, but not quite ready to give up consciousness.

Her mother smiled down at her, pride and love filling her eyes.

Jeannie Miller was brilliant, and no one questioned that, even if most had forgotten it. She'd been on the fast track to some serious think tank or research position when life had gotten in the way. Life that now drowsily tried to stay awake in front of her.

Her daughter, Madison, was six now, and except for one grand and very bizarre adventure with her brother Rodney a few years ago, Jeannie had left the world of high pressure theoretical physics and hypothetical number crunching behind her long ago, and she had no complaints.

She was happy.

As Jeannie caressed her daughter's fine hair and tucked the blanket tightly around the small child, a quiet voice plaintively made a familiar request.

"Mommy, tell me about Uncle Carson."

Jeannie smiled then, and began the tale she told nearly every night. The story never got old, for her or for Madison, and Jeannie was thankful she could tell it at all, because it meant that her brother was back in her life, and that her daughter had not one, but many 'uncles', and she was loved by them all. Madison's favorite, though, above John and Ronon and even Rodney, was Carson, beyond all doubt. Maybe that had to do with the fact that the little girl and the physician had never met and never would, thus making Carson forever perfect in her eyes, or maybe it was because little Madison thought she might want to be a doctor someday, but it didn't matter. She loved her 'uncle', and never tired of hearing his adventures.

"Well, you see, my brother, your uncle Rodney, well, he had this friend…"

And so it began, as it did nearly every night, and Madison smiled. Somewhere, not so very far away, a blue-eyed Scotsman smiled back.


	2. Pictures of the Soul

**Madison's Moments  
**

_Moment Two-Pictures of the Soul_

Rated: G.

Category: Gen, Carson/Rodney/Madison Miller Friendship.

Season: Future Season (twenty years post season three).

Spoilers: Sunday, McKay and Mrs. Miller.

Summary: Madison Miller's Favorite Uncle Is Still In Her Life.

Note: Rendered somewhat AU by Kindred.

---

It was a week before the first year medical students began classes, and Jackie Thomas was hurrying to get moved into her new apartment in time to get settled before her real work began.

She'd only found a place to stay a few days earlier, and she was nervous about her new roommate. She knew that the girl was another medical student, in her same class, and she'd seemed nice on the phone. That made Jackie hopeful that they would get along, or at least be busy enough not to bother each other too much over the next year, but she was still a little anxious. If things were really bad between them, it would be hard to find new accommodations in the middle of the school year.

As Jackie pulled into the driveway of the apartment complex, she noticed a small car, loaded down with stuff like her truck was and attached to a small trailer, being unloaded into the apartment she was to share with the stranger. It looked like her roommate was just as rushed as she was to get moved in. The apartment had been occupied by other students until recently, and so the move-in window for the two new tenants was very small. Jackie sighed. It wouldn't be fun to try to get two people moved in in just a few days, but they would manage.

As Jackie pulled into a parking spot as close as she could get to her new home, she noticed that her roommate had help moving in, and Jackie smiled. If she could get them to give her a hand, she might get everything into the apartment tonight, and that would help out a lot. Jackie's parents hadn't been involved in her life in a long time, and she had no other family to speak of, so she was used to doing most things on her own. This might be a pleasant surprise.

After heading upstairs to the apartment for a minute to get a look around and introduce herself, Jackie was feeling better about everything. Her new roommate, whose name was Madison Miller, seemed nice, and had even been waiting for Jackie to get there to pick rooms in the tiny two bedroom apartment. Madison's stuff, or rather the small portion of it that was already unloaded, was sitting in the common space of the living quarters. After Madison and Jackie had chosen rooms with a coin toss, the older adults that had been just sortof hanging around suddenly reminded the young women of their presence.

A tall, mocha skinned, wild haired man who reminded Jackie of a cross between a Jamaican and a Marine spoke first. "Hey, Mad, you ready to get this show on the road? I don't have all day."

The man's voice was like honey, and Jackie couldn't help but wonder where her roommate knew this guy from. There certainly was no family resemblance.

Madison answered from behind the kitchen counter. "Sure, Ronon. Just tell mom which room is mine. She'll get you started."

The big man turned and left without another word, and Jackie headed down to her truck to start bringing her own stuff in. As she started to lift the first load, a slightly shorter, very lean man with black spiky hair stepped up behind Jackie, startling her a little. His hair was beginning to grey at the temples, but he still made quite the picture himself, and again Jackie wondered where her new roommate got such good-looking help.

"Here, let me get that for you," the man offered.

Jackie wasn't going to turn down the help, and gladly gave up her box, grabbing another.

With the help of the two men and Madison's parents, the new medical students were moved in in no time, and Jackie smiled as she looked around her new home. If the smoothness of the move-in was any indication, it seemed she and her roommate were going to work out great.

As Jackie began to unpack some of her dishes and put them into the kitchen cabinets, she overheard Madison saying goodbye to her helpers.

"Thanks for all your help, guys. I couldn't have done it without you."

The spiky haired one answered. "Ah, it was nothing. You really think we would let our favorite niece go off to med school without helping?"

Madison sighed. "Well, I don't see my ACTUAL uncle anywhere, do you?"

The Jamaican Marine spoke next. "Yeah, well, you know Rodney…probably got his head stuck in some computer somewhere and doesn't even know what time it is, unless it's time to eat."

The group laughed out loud then, and Madison hugged both men tightly, then turned to her parents. "We still on for breakfast tomorrow before you head back?"

Madison's mom answered. "Sure thing, and I'll try to get that useless brother of mine up here, too. You know the promise of food will do the trick."

Madison laughed again, and her four helpers all exchanged another hug before leaving.

As the door shut behind them, Madison sighed and leaned back on the doorframe.

Jackie couldn't resist coming out of the kitchen and asking the only question on her mind.

"Those guys are your uncles?"

Madison looked at Jackie with a puzzled expression on her face briefly before realizing that there were certainly no common looks to her friends.

"Ah. Well, you see, John and Ronon are very good friends of my mom's brother. They've been around most of my life. So, yeah, they're my uncles."

Jackie nodded and smiled. "Cool."

Madison smiled back. "Yeah. It is."

The two young women stayed up most of the night unpacking and talking. Every now and then, Madison would yawn and make some comment about how she should go to bed because she had to meet her parents early for breakfast, but then forget all about that and get busy doing something else. By three thirty the following morning, both girls had decided it would be easier just to stay up and finish the job. Madison could sleep after breakfast. Their house was nearly completely unpacked and while things would take a while to find the best places to stay, it was progressive.

As Madison arranged a few pictures on top of the entertainment center, Jackie smiled, noting several photos of the two men who had helped them move in. Most included another man, who was shorter, a bit overweight, and slightly balding. The shorter one was obviously Madison's biological uncle. He did indeed look like he was related to Madison's mother. In fact, the resemblance was a little uncanny.

Jackie asked Madison to confirm her suspicions, pointing to the shorter man. "This your mom's brother?"

Madison looked up from where she sat on the floor unpacking another box for only a second before answering. "Yeah. That's Rodney."

Jackie nodded to herself and continued to look at the framed photographs. There was another picture that intrigued her. A dark haired man, with very blue eyes, stood with an arm draped over Rodney's shoulders, smiling broadly. Rodney looked happier in that photo than he did in any other, and the blue eyes of the other man shone out from the picture with joy.

As Jackie marveled at how alive the photo seemed, at how it perfectly captured a moment in the lives of two men, and at how it seemed she could literally see into their souls through the glass, her hand involuntarily traced the edge of the frame, noticing that it was chipped and worn, as if it had traveled a lot.

Jackie's voice came out as a whisper. "Madison?"

Madison looked up, this time for a long moment, before answering. "Yeah?"

"Who's this?"

Madison stood, and came to stand next to her roommate.

"That…is my Uncle Carson. He was a doctor, you know."

Thus began the first time that Jackie Thomas heard the tale of Doctor Carson Beckett.

The two young women didn't know it then, but Jackie would hear stories of Carson's adventures many more times, and her friendship with Madison would grow in the years to come until the two women were like sisters. Many years later, the friends would wonder out loud if a certain Scottish spirit had had anything to do with their meeting in the first place, and they would smile wistfully, wanting to believe.

Somewhere, much closer than the women thought, a cherished uncle smiled back.


	3. Graduation Gift

**Madison's Moments  
**

_Moment Three-Graduation Gift  
_

Rated: G.

Category: Gen, Carson/Rodney/Madison Miller Friendship.

Season: Future Season (twenty-four years post season three).

Spoilers: Sunday, McKay and Mrs. Miller.

Summary: A Special Gift Is A Perfect Reminder Of Those Who Went Before.

Note: Rendered somewhat AU by Kindred.

---

Madison Miller looked in the mirror and adjusted her robe one last time. She thought she looked completely ridiculous, but the crazy contraption she wore was required of her on this day.

'If only I could have skipped this part,' she thought wistfully.

Madison was graduating from medical school, though, and one only does that sort of thing a few times in life, so she had acquiesced to her mother's repeated pleas to attend the ceremony, despite her reluctance to do so.

Madison sighed in resignation, sprayed one final mist of hairspray on her hair, and left the bathroom of the convention center where graduation was being held to join her classmates in the queue to go into the auditorium where the ceremony would be.

She said hello to a few friends as she found her place in line. Her graduating class was only one hundred and fifty strong, so she knew almost everyone, but she was only close to a handful of her classmates. Her best friend and roommate, Jackie Thomas, was far behind her in line.

It wasn't long before the queue began to move and Madison's class was standing, then sitting, in the auditorium. Despite her initial reluctance to attend the ceremony, Madison felt a flutter of excitement at the fact that she was finally getting out of school and on with her life. She'd wanted to be a doctor for as long as she could remember, and to finally be getting the coveted 'MD' after her name was a thrill beyond description.

Of course, if Madison had her way, several more letters would be coming. Madison wanted to be a surgeon. Many people thought that when they entered medical school, but few had the stamina and strength for it. Cutting into live human beings was not something everyone could do, but Madison had excelled in every surgical class and rotation she'd had. Her marks were excellent, and she had earned the favor of several professors and instructors.

So much so that she'd had no problems being accepted to a prestigious position as an intern at a hospital that ran a busy trauma ER and had a heavy emphasis on surgery.

Madison only half listened to the speakers while she daydreamed about her future. If her internship went well, she would be able to continue into a surgical residency at the same hospital or transfer to another for further training. It was an exciting time for Madison. She couldn't wait to get some 'real world' experience.

She also couldn't wait for her first paycheck. She was under no delusions that she would be rich as an intern. She knew that interns were paid next to nothing for long hours and hard work, but anything had to be better than being a starving student. Ramen noodles and rice for dinner had gotten old long ago, so even though she was nervous about this new chapter in her life, everything was looking up for Madison Miller.

The only negative to graduating was having to leave her dear friend Jackie. Jackie had accepted a position at another hospital, and while she would only be three hours away by car, Madison knew that the distance would be enough to make visiting difficult, especially with their slave-like schedules as new interns.

But their friendship was strong enough to withstand some distance. Madison was sure of this. She and Jackie were the type of friends who could not talk for months then pick up right where they left off.

Madison's musings were interrupted suddenly as her classmates began to stand, row by row, to file across the stage to receive their diplomas and be 'hooded' with their doctoral decorations.

Before she knew it, it was her turn. She lifted a silent prayer that she wouldn't fall on her face on stage and then stepped out to the cheers of her family. Her parents were both watching, along with her Uncle Rodney. Some of their dearest friends, men she also considered her uncles, were in attendance, too. John Sheppard sat next to Teyla Emmagan, and Ronon Dex sat one row back from them all, looking uncomfortable with the whole affair but proud nonetheless. Several other members of Madison's extended family were there, too, but she'd never been very close to them, so their presence was barely noted in the graduate's busy mind. In fact, Madison didn't even hear the yells and claps of her friends at the time. They would have to tell her about them later.

And then it was done. It seemed to Madison that she was back in her seat only a moment when she clapped for Jackie and then stood and recited the words that so many others had intoned before her.

She was a doctor.

XXX

An hour and a half later, Madison was at dinner with her family, and she was being showered with gifts. Most were of a practical nature and what one would expect for the occasion.

Rodney gave her three crisp new lab coats, embroidered with her name.

John presented a crystal caduceus paperweight.

Her parents offered a new stethoscope to replace the one she'd lost on internal medicine last month.

Ronon and Teyla presented a gift from themselves and Dr Weir, who could not be present. The woman's touch shone through the gift, though, and Madison knew Elizabeth had helped her 'alien' friends with this one. It was a beautiful, artistic lithograph of the modern Hippocratic oath, centered in a gorgeous cherry frame.

Madison smiled and thanked each one of her generous benefactors in turn. It was truly a happy moment in her life, but her best gift was yet to come.

XXX

When dinner was finished, Madison returned to her apartment to find it empty. Jackie had also gone out for the evening and wouldn't return until later in the night or early the next morning. Jackie wasn't close to her family, so she'd gone out with several other classmates to celebrate, and Madison knew from experience that those evenings could be long ones.

So she showered, then kicked back on the couch to watch a little television. She actually liked the quiet of an evening to herself, and when she saw a favorite syndicated show was airing a favorite episode, she settled in for the ride.

The end credits woke Madison with a start. Part of her couldn't believe she had slept through the show, but another part was too sleepy to care. Madison clicked off the TV and drowsily stumbled to bed.

Now, normally Madison was asleep as soon as her head hit her pillow, and she didn't notice much of anything around her. Such was the rarity of sleep to the medical student. She took it whenever she could get it. But tonight, somehow, as she laid down, the new doctor felt a lump under her pillow. She turned on the light and then lifted the soft mass to see what was there.

What she saw surprised and touched her.

It was a small gift box with a pretty tag.

Madison's brow furrowed for a moment before she picked up the box and read the tag. As she did so, her face broke into a wide smile.

'_Mad, you know I'm as broke as you are, so this isn't much, but I saw it in a little shop downtown and I just had to get it for you. Happy graduation, friend. Keep in touch. -Jackie'_

Madison allowed herself a moment to reread the note twice, and each time her smile grew wider until her face seemed like it would break. She had purchased a small gift for Jackie, too, even though the two friends had agreed not to do so.

When she couldn't wait any longer, Madison opened the small box. What she found there made tears spring to her eyes, and she let them fall easily without shame.

The small piece of metal, about one and a quarter inches wide and one inch tall, with a simple pin attachment on the back, was unremarkable. Pins like it were very commonly worn by doctors and nurses on their lab coats or smocks. But this one was special because of what was on it. The design was so simple, but so meaningful that Madison was blown away by the gift.

The pin was solid blue with two diagonal while lines intersecting in its middle to form an off-kilter 'X' that divided the blue into four triangles.

The Scottish flag.

It might seem an odd gift to some, since neither Madison or Jackie had any familial direct ties to Scotland, but anyone who knew Madison knew the significance of Jackie's gift.

It was a remembrance.

For Carson.

As Madison picked up the pin, she noticed another tiny note in the bottom of the box. As she read this one, she held the pin tightly in her hand and smiled to the heavens.

'_He'd be proud, you know.'_

Madison's thoughts were spoken out loud then.

"Oh, Jackie-thank you. It's perfect."

Madison laid the pin reverently on the bedside table and turned off the lamp, fatigue overcoming her.

As young Doctor Miller drifted happily to sleep, she smiled.

Her favorite uncle smiled back, wishing he could kiss young Jackie Thomas, MD, for her thoughtfulness and feeling very remembered indeed.


	4. Finally

**Madison's Moments  
**

_Moment Four-Finally_

Rated: PG.

Category: Gen, Carson/Rodney/Madison Miller Friendship.

Season: Future Season (thirty years post season three).

Spoilers: Sunday, McKay and Mrs. Miller.

Summary: A Torch Is Passed.

Note: Rendered somewhat AU by Kindred.

---

John Sheppard, Major General, United States Air Force, nearly retired, didn't come to Atlantis very often anymore. Not because he didn't want to, but simply because he couldn't. He was too busy. His post was back on Earth now, and it just didn't let him get away very often.

But when he could, he got through the gate to Pegasus. Almost everything was different there now, but Atlantis somehow still felt like home for John. Perhaps it was because Elizabeth had retired on the city, or because Teyla and Ronon were still consultant team members there. Perhaps it was because he had commanded the city briefly, or because he still had comfortable quarters there. John didn't know the reason, but it didn't matter to him.

Atlantis was his home, as much as Earth.

And so he came.

Whenever he could.

This trip wasn't purely for pleasure, but the diplomatic meetings he had to endure were worth it for a chance to visit old friends and see 'his' city in all its glory.

Atlantis had been fully powered and operational for over a decade now, but it still never ceased to amaze the General when he saw it. Atlantis was truly a glorious place.

As he stepped away from the puddlejumper, John ran a hand through his still spiky but now silver hair and looked around. So much had changed, but the jumper bay was exactly the same. The tall general smiled, then sighed to himself.

'Time to get this show on the road,' thought John. The sooner he got his duties done, the sooner he could spend some time with his old friends and his city.

As soon as John's mind wandered to thoughts of his friends, the doors to the jumper bay opened. Doctor Elizabeth Weir, former commander of the city, came through the entry and smiled broadly at the new arrival. Sheppard smiled back and greeted this most special friend.

"Elizabeth! Good to see you!"

"Likewise, John."

Their conversation was never allowed to continue. Any further pleasantries were prevented by a sudden explosion to John's right. Elizabeth hadn't yet reached the General, so she escaped the blast with only a resounding headache and a few minor cuts caused by shrapnel. The force of the fireball hit her only enough to knock her back a few feet.

She immediately called for help as sirens began to blare, sounding the alarm throughout the city.

"Medical and fire control teams to jumper bay two!"

Elizabeth couldn't see much through the wall of fire and smoke in front of her, but as Atlantis' automatic fire control systems kicked in, decreasing the smoke instantly with vacuum action and dumping water and flame-retardant foam on the fire, she began to make out details she could have lived forever without noticing.

Two marines were dead, their bodies so mutilated by the blast that there was no hope of their survival. The men had been John's pilot and navigator. Only three men had been in the bay with Elizabeth when the flames erupted. That left only John to find.

John.

Elizabeth didn't see him at first.

It took a full ten seconds for her to find him.

When she did, the heart that had stopped beating in her chest when the explosion occurred plummeted to her toes and stayed there.

Elizabeth started to move, trying desperately to fight the flames to reach the General's side. She made it only a few feet before strong hands in thick orange gloves pulled her back, away from the fire and her friend.

The fire control team had a pretty good fight on their hands, but it took them only seconds to drag a kicking Elizabeth out of the bay to safety.

The medical team took a quick look at her and immediately sent Elizabeth, under her own power, to the infirmary. She could be checked over once the more seriously wounded victims of the explosion had been treated.

Elizabeth tried to linger, but she couldn't see anything through the mass of people in the doorway to the jumper bay anyway, so she slowly drifted away from the carnage toward the infirmary. As she rounded the first corner she came to, a shout rang out.

"The General's alive! Quick! Get him on the gurney!"

Elizabeth's heart leapt back into her chest and began pounding wildly. A tiny spring of hope began to trickle in her soul. If anyone could live through anything, it was John Sheppard, and if anyone could save him, it was Atlantis' new CMO. Elizabeth believed in miracles with these two involved.

'Come on, John,' she thought madly. 'Hang on-you can beat this.'

Elizabeth's steps quickened. She had a reason to get to the infirmary now.

XXX

Back in the hallway outside jumper bay two, the medical team took charge of their patient with practiced professionalism. Sheppard was unconscious and badly wounded, but alive.

The doctor in charge of the team issued orders left and right as the team moved through the city with their patient. Using the transporters on critical patients was risky, so they moved the 'old-fashioned' way. They pushed a gurney, all the while administering blood, fluids, and drugs to the wounded man.

When they were almost to the infirmary, by some miracle, Sheppard regained consciousness.

XXX

I can't hear.

I can't feel.

I can only see.

And I only see one thing.

I don't know what it is.

It's blue.

And white.

Blue and white. In a pattern. A cross. No, an 'X'.

A blue and white 'X'…a blue and white 'X'…a white 'X' on a blue background…somehow my brain says that can only mean one thing…and somehow I'm comforted. I reach out to my salvation.

"Carson? Am I dead?"

XXX

The moving hand on her arm surprised her for a moment, but when Atlantis' CMO of two months turned to see her patient not only conscious but intently looking at her and trying to speak for a second before eventually, miraculously, succeeding, she was flabbergasted.

"Carson? Am I dead?"

The young female surgeon smiled. She answered her patient quietly, gently whispering in his ear.

"No, John. Wrong on both. But I've got you. You're gonna be ok. I've got you."

As her patient slipped back into oblivion, Madison Miller, CMO of Atlantis, former chief of surgery for Baltimore County Hospital, glanced subtly down at the Scottish flag lapel pin she'd worn every day since graduating from medical school. She smiled, ever so slightly, as she jumped off the edge of the gurney where she'd been riding in order to treat her patient.

Her team had reached the infirmary, and Dr. Miller handed her long time friend over to another doctor as she shouted an order as a consummate professional. John Sheppard was her patient now, and he would receive the best care she could give him as a doctor, which meant that right now, she couldn't be his friend.

"Get him prepped for surgery on the open shrapnel wound to the abdomen after initial survey and stabilization. I'll be waiting."

Madison then stepped into the sterile alcove where she would 'scrub' for surgery using touchless Ancient technology to remove any bacteria and other contaminants from her body before donning her surgical attire.

Fifteen minutes later, Madison Miller, no longer a girl, stood confidently ready to incise John Sheppard's abdomen with her scalpel in an attempt to save his life by removing a large chunk of metal from his bleeding spleen. She allowed herself one final personal thought before getting lost in the injury and forgetting the patient's identity.

'Just hang on, John. I've got you.'

Somewhere, very close by, a long time lingerer to Atlantis, and to Madison, nodded his head with a sweet, proud sadness, and lifted a thought of his own before finally lingering no more.

'Aye, that you do, lassie. That you do.'

With those words, Doctor Carson Beckett finally rested, by his own choice. He was finally at peace. Atlantis was in good hands. Hands he trusted. Hands he had followed since before they first held a scalpel. Carson allowed himself a final look around the city and at his friends, and then he was gone, finally worrying no more.


End file.
